Im Jongheon Refuses to Testify as Witness in Judicial Farming Scandal Trial

Im Jong-heon, former Deputy Director of the Judicial Administration Office Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Jo] Former Deputy Chief of the Judicial Administration Office, Im Jongheon, appeared as a witness in the trial concerning allegations of abuse of judicial administrative power by former high-ranking judges and refused to testify entirely.

On the 3rd, Im appeared as a witness at the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 32 (Presiding Judge Yoon Jongseop) during the trial of former Judicial Administration Office Director Lee Mingul and former Supreme Court Sentencing Commission Standing Member Lee Gyu-jin, who are charged with abuse of authority. He stated, "I refuse to testify to all questioning by the prosecution and the defendants." Im added, "I am also undergoing a separate trial for allegations of abuse of judicial administrative power," and "Since the prosecutor may submit my testimony as evidence of guilt, this constitutes grounds for exercising the right to refuse testimony."

The court acknowledged that Im could exercise his right to refuse testimony but did not accept his blanket refusal and instructed that each question be judged individually. However, Im refused to answer all subsequent questions during the examination.

Previously, on the 19th of last month, Im was summoned as a witness in the trial of former Director Lee and others but did not appear, stating he would not testify until his own trial was concluded, resulting in a fine of 3 million won. However, the court took into account Im’s attendance at the trial on this day and canceled the imposed fine.

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